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Authors: Hunter Kennedy
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Chasm.
Hercules was surprised by just how wide and high it was. And how enormous Castletop was.
To him, it looked more like a gigantic apple core after someone had eaten the apple. To Geekus, it looked like an immense mushroom.
The amazing thing was the drop between the edge of the forest and Castletop. It was at least a mile straight down! And below was a raging riverânot that anyone could survive the fall.
âWhat kind of an enchantment could make such a place?â Geekus breathed, clearly in awe of it all.
âA powerful one,â Hercules answered. âVery, very powerful.â
You wouldnât believe how powerful,
Brooma said on the stiff breeze.
Hercules realized they were now facing the huge problem heâd forced himself not to think about the whole trip here. Heâd never imagined the chasm to be this wide. Heâd assumed that once they reached this place, they could climb down one side of it, and back up the other. Or that they could somehow swing across on ropes or vines.
Dumb,
Hercules thought.
Very dumb,
Brooma agreed.
Hercules sat down and just looked out at the wide gorge. The truth was, it would be impossible to cross. That was obvious now. Hercules was suddenly very mad at himself and at everyone else connected with this lame-brained quest. Heâd endured rough travel, sleeping plants, dragons, night creatures, roadblocks, ghosts, and Geekusâs snifflingâand for what? To get here finally and discover they could go no farther?
âAre you sure that enchantment of yours wonât work from here?â Hercules asked the wind.
âAre you sure youâre really talking to someone when you do that?â Geekus sniffled.
Iâm sure,
came Broomaâs reply to Herculesâ ear.
It be just the length of your shadow on a very sunny day. No more. . . .
âCan you turn us into birds?â Hercules asked the wind.
The cackle in Herculesâ ear was almost painful.
If I could have done that, we all could have flown here. . . .
Hercules grabbed a handful of grass and threw it into the wind, as if this would hurt Brooma.
At that moment he happened to look over at Geekus, who was not sniffling or wheezing. He was instead just staring up into the sky, his mouth wide open.
âWhat is it now?â Hercules asked him harshly.
But Geekus couldnât reply.
All he could do was point.
Up in the sky. Right overhead. A great shadow was passing over them.
Get down!
Broomaâs voice screamed.
Hercules needed no prompting. However, he did have to reach up and grab Geekus by his smock and pull him down into the underbrush with him.
âBy the gods, look at that,â the boy wheezed.
It was the dragonâthe same one theyâd encountered earlier, flying right over their heads. Looking up at it, it seemed even more enormous than before. It was snarling and breathing fire and smoke.
âWow! It canât be real!â Geekus yelled out.
Hercules had to agree with him. The thing just looked way too big to be able to fly, and he said so.
âOf course,â Geekus said after a sniff, âitâs not really flying. Technically, itâs gliding. See?â
Hercules did see what he meant. The huge creature wasnât beating its wings as much as holding them straight out and letting the wind do the work.
âSo thatâs how he does it,â Hercules whispered as the dragon settled down onto a piece of land outside the walls of Castletop.
Hercules and Geekus stayed hidden and watched in silence for the next few minutes. They heard trumpets blaring and saw the Amazons deposit a small mountain of food in front of the creature. The creature inhaled the food in a matter of seconds.
Once the dragon had consumed his meal and sniffed the ground all round him, the trumpets blared again. The creature reluctantly walked to the edge of Castletop and jumped off.
Once again, he spread his wings like a condor and let the air currents
Hercules was surprised by just how wide and high it was. And how enormous Castletop was.
To him, it looked more like a gigantic apple core after someone had eaten the apple. To Geekus, it looked like an immense mushroom.
The amazing thing was the drop between the edge of the forest and Castletop. It was at least a mile straight down! And below was a raging riverânot that anyone could survive the fall.
âWhat kind of an enchantment could make such a place?â Geekus breathed, clearly in awe of it all.
âA powerful one,â Hercules answered. âVery, very powerful.â
You wouldnât believe how powerful,
Brooma said on the stiff breeze.
Hercules realized they were now facing the huge problem heâd forced himself not to think about the whole trip here. Heâd never imagined the chasm to be this wide. Heâd assumed that once they reached this place, they could climb down one side of it, and back up the other. Or that they could somehow swing across on ropes or vines.
Dumb,
Hercules thought.
Very dumb,
Brooma agreed.
Hercules sat down and just looked out at the wide gorge. The truth was, it would be impossible to cross. That was obvious now. Hercules was suddenly very mad at himself and at everyone else connected with this lame-brained quest. Heâd endured rough travel, sleeping plants, dragons, night creatures, roadblocks, ghosts, and Geekusâs snifflingâand for what? To get here finally and discover they could go no farther?
âAre you sure that enchantment of yours wonât work from here?â Hercules asked the wind.
âAre you sure youâre really talking to someone when you do that?â Geekus sniffled.
Iâm sure,
came Broomaâs reply to Herculesâ ear.
It be just the length of your shadow on a very sunny day. No more. . . .
âCan you turn us into birds?â Hercules asked the wind.
The cackle in Herculesâ ear was almost painful.
If I could have done that, we all could have flown here. . . .
Hercules grabbed a handful of grass and threw it into the wind, as if this would hurt Brooma.
At that moment he happened to look over at Geekus, who was not sniffling or wheezing. He was instead just staring up into the sky, his mouth wide open.
âWhat is it now?â Hercules asked him harshly.
But Geekus couldnât reply.
All he could do was point.
Up in the sky. Right overhead. A great shadow was passing over them.
Get down!
Broomaâs voice screamed.
Hercules needed no prompting. However, he did have to reach up and grab Geekus by his smock and pull him down into the underbrush with him.
âBy the gods, look at that,â the boy wheezed.
It was the dragonâthe same one theyâd encountered earlier, flying right over their heads. Looking up at it, it seemed even more enormous than before. It was snarling and breathing fire and smoke.
âWow! It canât be real!â Geekus yelled out.
Hercules had to agree with him. The thing just looked way too big to be able to fly, and he said so.
âOf course,â Geekus said after a sniff, âitâs not really flying. Technically, itâs gliding. See?â
Hercules did see what he meant. The huge creature wasnât beating its wings as much as holding them straight out and letting the wind do the work.
âSo thatâs how he does it,â Hercules whispered as the dragon settled down onto a piece of land outside the walls of Castletop.
Hercules and Geekus stayed hidden and watched in silence for the next few minutes. They heard trumpets blaring and saw the Amazons deposit a small mountain of food in front of the creature. The creature inhaled the food in a matter of seconds.
Once the dragon had consumed his meal and sniffed the ground all round him, the trumpets blared again. The creature reluctantly walked to the edge of Castletop and jumped off.
Once again, he spread his wings like a condor and let the air currents
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